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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26314474">Overcast By Your Shadow</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/'>Anonymous</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Wars Sequel Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Dark, Alternate Universe - High School, Ben is 34, Controlling Kylo Ren, Corruption, Dark Kylo Ren, F/M, Grooming, Innocence, Manipulation, Obsession, Older Man/Younger Woman, Parent Death, Rey is 16, Stalking, Teacher-Student Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:02:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Underage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,324</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26314474</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After a horror story summer, Rey moves in with her godmother across the country.</p>
<p>One of her new neighbors is not only a family friend, but also teaches at Rey's new school. He volunteers to keep an eye on her.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>70</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Anonymous</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Overcast By Your Shadow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>No R/NC tag but Ben uses some seriously insidious manipulation to ensure Rey gets addicted to him. So it's pretty rapey but like... on the downlow. Psychologically rapey or sumn. Just keep in mind he's a predator basically is what I'm saying.</p>
<p>Chapter titles from You're Somebody Else by flora cash</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>By Rey's approximation, she and Maz - her godmother - have spent thirty-seven days on the road from Atlanta to Maz's house in Portland. It's really only been about a five-day trip, but Rey's numb ass begs to differ.</p>
<p>"Here we are," Maz says cheerfully as she pulls into the driveway. "Our final destination."</p>
<p>Her house is big. Not quite the type rich folks live in, but a lot more upper class than Rey's used to. Maz didn't give her the lowdown on anything aside from telling Rey she'd have her own bathroom, so Rey can't quite take her eyes off it as she unclasps her seatbelt and slides out of the car. It's at least two stories where Rey's house only had one, and it looks like it would be big enough for a family of five at least. Maz has been known to take in a few stray kids here and there, so Rey shouldn't feel so surprised, but she is.</p>
<p>Also excited, but that causes her stomach to tighten with guilt, so she averts her gaze and tries not to think about it.</p>
<p>Maz leaves the car and walks around to the trunk.</p>
<p>"Your things are getting here on Friday, dear? Or was it Thursday?"</p>
<p>"Yeah, Friday."</p>
<p>Maz hums in acknowledgment and opens the gate while Rey follows to help with the few boxes she brought with them; basic necessities.</p>
<p>"I've cleaned out one of the spare bedrooms for all your stuff, but if you need more room, just let me know and I'll work it out."</p>
<p>Guilt again. "You don't have to."</p>
<p>Maz gently pats her shoulder. "Of course I do, dear."</p>
<p>Rey doesn't answer, pulling out her moving boxes one by one and setting them on the driveway. She just feels like a burden. Maz shouldn't have to do any of this in the first place. Rey's not her responsibility. She's not anyone's, anymore.</p>
<p>When Rey's done, Maz reaches way up to grab the hood and close it, and Rey only belatedly realizes maybe she should have helped.</p>
<p>"I want you to meet someone tonight at dinner," she says on their way inside with the first couple boxes. "Family friend, really nice young man. He teaches at your new school. I thought it'd be good to have a friendly face there."</p>
<p>"Okay," she mumbles, disinterested. "Fine."</p>
<p>She's exhausted after their trip, but she still takes the next hour to unpack and organize what she brought. Some clothes, make-up, toiletries; laptop, school supplies, lucky blanket. A family photo that she treasured too much to leave with the movers, just in case. She sets the picture of her parents on her nightstand, hovering and staring at it.</p>
<p>For a while after their deaths, all she did was look at photos and videos. Then that hurt too much, so she stopped. But she's back to it now. It still feels like being pierced through the heart, but it eases a different kind of ache, too; a gaping hole where her abdomen should be. The only thing that fills it is pretending her parents are still alive. Looking at their pictures helps.</p>
<p>After everything's unpacked, vacant boxes stacked clumsily by the door, Rey flops over onto her new bed and wraps herself in her lucky blanket. It's pastel pink, sheer and thin from so many washes. Ratty. It does nothing for warmth, but it gives her a huge amount of comfort, so she'll never throw it away. Maz tried to convince her it was garbage despite Rey's protests in favor of its sentimental value. She's had it all through her childhood. Keeping it feels like keeping a part of her life before her parents died, like if she hangs onto this blanket, she can hang onto them. Maz said she understood, but Rey can tell she still sees it as tattered and useless, containing nothing of what Rey's so desperately trying to cling onto. Rey thinks Maz might 'accidentally' throw it out, so she clings tighter.</p>
<p>Just as she's surveying her new room - pale blue walls, big picture window, much comfier bed than she's used to - Maz pops her head in for the twentieth time in the last hour.</p>
<p>"Knock knock," she says as she raps on the open door.</p>
<p>Rey groans, annoyed. "What is it?"</p>
<p>It's tiring, having Maz hover. Suffocating.</p>
<p>"Just seeing how everything's going."</p>
<p>"Nothing's changed in the last five minutes, Maz."</p>
<p>She tries to keep the bite out of her voice, but some of it still slips through.</p>
<p>"You want anything to eat?"</p>
<p>Rey sighs under her breath. "I'm not hungry."</p>
<p>"I could make you a sandwich."</p>
<p>"No, I'm okay."</p>
<p>"Or some snacks?"</p>
<p>"Maz, no, please."</p>
<p>"Okay. You just let me know if there's anything I can do for you."</p>
<p>Rey closes her eyes, irritation abruptly spiking to anger. <em>Leaving me alone would be great</em>, she thinks.</p>
<p>All she says is, "I will."</p>
<p>"Okay, dear."</p>
<p>Rey opens her eyes to the ceiling and sighs again, this time deeply. She knows Maz is worried, but God, if she could just have some <em>space</em>....</p>
<p>When Maz checks in on her after another five minutes, Rey snaps. She grabs her phone and leaves the house to go for a walk. There was a tiny bridge they passed not too long before arriving at Maz's, and underneath was a beach of white pebbles. It looked peaceful earlier, and Rey could really use that right now. Peace, solitude, silence. That's all she wants.</p>
<p>She estimates it's only a ten-minute walk at the most, so she sets out in the direction they came from, looking at the other nice houses on her new street as she heads for the bridge. One of them belongs to her new teacher, but Maz never pointed it out. It doesn't matter, though. Rey's not really that curious.</p>
<p>It's a cool Summer evening, perfect weather for her standard jeans and a t-shirt - black jeans, white band tee. Black and white really do it for her these days. Colors are too pleasant. They remind her she's <em>not</em>. There's no sidewalk, so she walks on the grass, scarce vehicles passing her before she arrives, and when she does, the tension leaves her before she's even made it to the water. A comforting breeze flutters her hair as she clambers down the worn footpath to the rocks, feeling like she can finally just tune-out for a bit. Water sounds remind her of home; her old house had a creek just beyond the backyard.</p>
<p>An image flashes through her mind of splashing in the water years ago with her dad, and she winces, eyelids briefly shuttering. Grief can be a physical pain, she's learned, and it hasn't been long enough without them for her to be able to cope with the hurt. She thinks about her dad the most. They were so close, her and him. Always so close.</p>
<p>She doesn't know how long she's there - maybe thirty minutes - before she hears the sound of tires slowing to a stop close by. It's only when the vehicle shuts off and a car door opens and closes that she looks back over her shoulder. A man emerges from a black SUV - a tall, broad man - who instantly sets her on edge because he's looking right at her, and now walking right toward her. It hits her that she might be on private property, though somehow doesn't think so, but stands up to greet him in case she actually is doing something wrong.</p>
<p>"Hello," she says politely, wary.</p>
<p>He gives her a soft smile, pebbles clattering together underfoot as he approaches. He's wearing formal clothes - black slacks, dark blue button-down tucked into his pants - and a black fleece hoodie unzipped. His hair is black and wavy, longer than is typical on a man, and styled quite well. He gives her Dracula vibes, but maybe that's her apprehension speaking. He looks like he's a businessman or something. These types are always so snobbish. Rey crosses her arms.</p>
<p>"Am I not supposed to be here or something? I can go."</p>
<p>"No, not at all." His deep, <em>deep</em> voice has her suddenly more focused. It rouses something in her, something primal. "I wanted to introduce myself."</p>
<p>Rey's eyebrows twitch together, her gaze glancing to the side then back to him.</p>
<p>Okay. Weird.</p>
<p>"Um... do I... know you?"</p>
<p>She doesn't, of course. There's no way she'd forget such an imposing person.</p>
<p>He continues moving toward her until she takes an automatic step back, and then he stops.</p>
<p>"Not yet, but I know you."</p>
<p>Rey's gut clenches <em>hard</em>. A sudden dizzy feeling envelops her body, making her blink several times as the sounds around her dim in her ears. This is a serial killer full stop. That was <em>such</em> a serial killer thing to say.</p>
<p>Obviously she's thought about this situation before, what she would do if she were in it, but actually <em>being</em> in it is a lot different. She just stares at him, poised to run, but frozen to the spot.</p>
<p>"I like it here, too," he says, oblivious - somehow - to the waves of panic flooding her system. He nods to the water and gazes at it as he puts his hands in the pockets of his slacks. "Not a lot of people."</p>
<p>He meets her eye again and blinks, smiling gently.</p>
<p>Not a lot of people? Her blood pounds in her veins, body getting ready to fight or run. Is she really about to get kidnapped? Really? It's still light out.</p>
<p>As she tries to think fast about what to do, unease sinks beneath her skin, settling, making her visibly shudder.</p>
<p>"Cold?" he asks kindly, shrugging out of his jacket and coming toward her.</p>
<p>"No." She takes a step back and he freezes, hoodie halfway down his arms. She pulls her phone from her jeans. "I'm calling my godmother."</p>
<p>He nods, sliding his sleeves back on. "By all means."</p>
<p>Rey tries to appear unafraid, but she's waiting for him to rush her while the phone is ringing. He never does, staying firmly on the rocks about two meters away, and then Maz picks up.</p>
<p>"Hi, dear. Everything all right?"</p>
<p>Rey exhales her held breath. "Oh my God, no."</p>
<p>"What's wrong?" she asks, instantly alert.</p>
<p>Rey drops her voice to a whisper, hunching in on herself for some privacy. Her free hand slips into her back pocket.</p>
<p>"I'm at the bridge we drove on earlier and this creepy man stopped here. He's trying to talk to me and saying really weird things, like, 'You don't know me, but I know you.'"</p>
<p>Rey's paraphrasing, but she's hoping Maz takes her seriously.</p>
<p>"What?" she snaps. "Who is it?"</p>
<p>"<em>I</em> don't know!" she whispers harshly. "Some big guy. He's dressed like some professional or something. He's really weirding me out."</p>
<p>"It's Ben," he says, somewhat loudly. Rey glances at him. He heard her. "Tell her Ben Solo."</p>
<p>Rey hesitates, dry lips parted, gaze locked on the man.</p>
<p>"Ben Solo?" she says meekly.</p>
<p>"Oh! Ben's there?"</p>
<p>Rey frowns, pausing. "Who's Ben?"</p>
<p>The stranger offers her another soft smile. Rey swallows and straightens, still lasered in on him.</p>
<p>Maz <em>laughs</em>, which Rey finds entirely offensive given that she's terrified and her heart still hasn't stopped pounding.</p>
<p>"Rey, dear, that's the teacher I was telling you about. He lives down the street."</p>
<p>Rey stares at the man for another moment and cups her other hand over the receiver, lowering her voice.</p>
<p>"What if he's impersonating him?"</p>
<p>"Oh," Maz scoffs, then laughs. "Put him on the line. Let me talk to him."</p>
<p>Rey's not about to give him her phone, so she puts it on speaker and takes a mere two steps toward him before reaching out her arm.</p>
<p>"It's on speaker. She wants to talk to you."</p>
<p>He finally drops his eyes from her.</p>
<p>"Hey, Maz. It's me."</p>
<p>"Ben! How are you, dear?"</p>
<p>Rey's eyes flit down to her phone, her expression morphing into a deep frown. Dear? That's <em>her</em> name.</p>
<p>"Good, good," he says, glancing briefly at Rey and back to the phone. "I just went for a drive and saw Rey. Thought I'd say hi."</p>
<p>Hearing her name in his voice feels disconcerting seeing as she didn't give it to him. It's intrusive, too familiar. <em>I don't know you</em>, she thinks, abrasive. But she keeps her features schooled.</p>
<p>Maz talks to Ben for a minute before telling him she'll see him tonight for dinner, and then hangs up without even saying goodbye to Rey. Rey stares at her phone, about to say bye to Maz to pretend she wasn't hung up on, but it was really pretty obvious.</p>
<p>She pockets her phone, cheeks heated, and looks at Ben. Mr. Solo, rather. Teacher. Right.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," he says, hands still in his pockets. She's having difficulty adjusting to the rumbling depth in his voice. "I didn't mean to scare you."</p>
<p>She lets out something like a laugh through her nose, humorless.</p>
<p>"I don't think you tried very hard not to."</p>
<p>He laughs under his breath, watching her. He holds her gaze long enough that she has to look away to avoid the encroaching awkwardness.</p>
<p>"Well, I should go home."</p>
<p>He turns halfway to his car and pebbles scatter. "I'll give you a ride."</p>
<p>"No," she says firmly, but at his raised eyebrows, adds, "Thanks."</p>
<p>Besides the fact that Maz knows him, he's still a veritable stranger. And it's a short walk home. And it's not that dark yet.</p>
<p>He nods once, swallowing. "Okay." He lifts his hand in a still wave as he starts to walk away, gaze remaining on her. "See you for dinner, Rey."</p>
<p>She still doesn't like him saying her name. "Yeah. Okay."</p>
<p>He turns his back then and leaves. Rey pretends to do the same, but when his vehicle disappears, she goes back to the water and sits on the rocks again, slipping back into solitude as she waits for the sunset.</p>
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